Three Thoughts of Home

1. 'Tis the season to receive rejections (and then re-send those pieces out again). Recently, I've noticed that more rejections include words such as these:

I wish you the best in finding a home for it.

"Finding a home": that really is a good metaphor for publishing an essay (or short story) in a publication. I've written before about feeling as if characters in a story, when it finds publication, have friends. This is a similar phenomenon.

And so even though I thought I had found the perfect publication for the most recently rejected essay, I was mistaken. It's good to know--I sure don't want it to be there if it's not welcomed. So, on to the next publication.

2. It's time for me to switch journal notebooks, and I was flipping through the one that's full. It has entries from January, when I was just back from a vacation at the holidays. In it, I wrote

Home is imperfect but it fits you like that leather couch: it gives where it needs to and holds you like you're the most beloved creature in the world.

Some seasons are more hospitable than others and your mileage may vary from that of your loved one. For example, pollen makes Spring particularly difficult for my husband, whereas I'm not a fan of those 40-below days in January. Still, this place is home to both of us, in all four seasons, and we know how lucky we are.

3. Speaking of seasons, baseball season has begun. And my favorite rumination about home is this classic from George Carlin:

CRADLE OF THE DEEP

Marion Agnew is an editor and writer who lives and works in Shuniah, Ontario -- a little slice of paradise just outside Thunder Bay. Email her at agnewmarion [at] tbaytel [dot] net. On Instagram, she's @marionagnew